Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at rumors of U.S.-Iran peace talks, Red Cross access to Myanmar’s imprisoned former leader, and a dangerous heat wave on the Korean Peninsula.

‘Unbelievably Duplicitous’

Iran has denied it is engaging in direct talks with the United States to end months of war—a day after U.S. President Donald Trump called off plans for a massive military strike and said a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was imminent.

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at rumors of U.S.-Iran peace talks, Red Cross access to Myanmar’s imprisoned former leader, and a dangerous heat wave on the Korean Peninsula.

‘Unbelievably Duplicitous’

Iran has denied it is engaging in direct talks with the United States to end months of war—a day after U.S. President Donald Trump called off plans for a massive military strike and said a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was imminent.

“We had an attack that would be the biggest attack since World War II, and it would have been disastrous for them,” Trump told reporters on Sunday. But key Gulf leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, reportedly told Trump that they would prefer diplomacy.

Trump said he acquiesced to their demands, announcing a new round of U.S.-Iran peace talks for Monday afternoon. “The deal is imminent, having to do with the Hormuz Strait and also, ultimately, the denuclearization of Iran,” Trump said on Sunday.

But Tehran begged to differ.

“We currently do not have negotiations with America,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said on Monday, adding that Tehran has no plans to send negotiators abroad or host foreign officials in the coming days. Baghaei added that Iran is currently in talks with Oman to establish a temporary safe route through the strait to help ease the global energy crisis.

Trump responded by calling the Iranian leadership “unbelievably duplicitous.”

“They ask for a meeting, some would........

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